COMMODITIES
Gold hits six-week high
Gold advanced for a fifth day to the highest level in more than six weeks on signs the Federal Reserve may delay an interest rate increase as inflation remains low and the selloff in emerging markets spreads. Gold for immediate delivery climbed as much as 1.4 percent to US$1,168.39 an ounce, the highest level since July 7, before trading at US$1,158.75 by 2:57pm in Singapore, according to Bloomberg generic pricing. The metal has surged 3.9 percent this week and is set for the biggest such gain since January. Fed officials showed concern over low inflation, according to the minutes of last month’s meeting, signaling a possible rate increase in December instead of next month. China’s decision to devalue amid slower growth and prospects for higher US interest rates have spurred selling across emerging markets and commodities.
ECONOMY
Eurozone gains momentum
The eurozone economy picked up momentum this month, with an improvement in Germany lifting a business index to close to its highest level in four years. Markit Economics said yesterday that its composite Purchasing Managers’ Index of manufacturing and services rose to 54.1 from 53.9 last month, close to the four-year high reached in June. That is above the 50 mark that divides expansion from contraction and compares with a median estimate of 53.7 in a Bloomberg survey of economists. The increase was partly led by Germany, the region’s largest economy, where a factory index rose to the highest level in more than a year. That offset “disappointing” numbers in France, where manufacturing shrank for a second month.
STOCK MARKET
Samsung eyes NASDAQ
South Korea’s dominant Samsung conglomerate is to make its first entry into US stock markets next year with the listing of a biotechnology affiliate, a company official said yesterday. The listing of Samsung Bioepis on the NASDAQ Stock Market is aimed at securing funds for investment in the field of biosimilars — a new breed of drugs that mimic the effects of biologic drugs made from living cells. “With an underwriter already designated, preparations are under way for the public stock listing of Bioepis in the first half of next year,” a Samsung official said. Bioepis are to be the first Samsung affiliate to list in the US. Samsung Electronics controls 46 percent of Samsung BioLogics, which in turn holds 90 percent of Bioepis. The Samsung group is already remarkably diverse, with interests ranging from electronics to construction and shipbuilding and sees biotechnology as a revenue growth engine for the future.
ECONOMY
Seoul sees spending slump
South Koreans spent less of their incomes on shopping, leisure and bills last quarter, underscoring the challenge the government faces in boosting domestic demand. Household spending as a percentage of disposable income, excluding items like tax and pensions, fell to 71.6 percent in April-June from 72.3 percent in the first three months of the year, the statistics office said in a statement yesterday. With exports dropping every month this year, South Korea is relying on a revival in consumption to support its economy. The decline in the consumption rate comes after the central bank cut interest rates four times in the past year to a record low of 1.5 percent and the government introduced its largest-ever budget this year.
‘SWASTICAR’: Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s close association with Donald Trump has prompted opponents to brand him a ‘Nazi’ and resulted in a dramatic drop in sales Demonstrators descended on Tesla Inc dealerships across the US, and in Europe and Canada on Saturday to protest company chief Elon Musk, who has amassed extraordinary power as a top adviser to US President Donald Trump. Waving signs with messages such as “Musk is stealing our money” and “Reclaim our country,” the protests largely took place peacefully following fiery episodes of vandalism on Tesla vehicles, dealerships and other facilities in recent weeks that US officials have denounced as terrorism. Hundreds rallied on Saturday outside the Tesla dealership in Manhattan. Some blasted Musk, the world’s richest man, while others demanded the shuttering of his
ADVERSARIES: The new list includes 11 entities in China and one in Taiwan, which is a local branch of Chinese cloud computing firm Inspur Group The US added dozens of entities to a trade blacklist on Tuesday, the US Department of Commerce said, in part to disrupt Beijing’s artificial intelligence (AI) and advanced computing capabilities. The action affects 80 entities from countries including China, the United Arab Emirates and Iran, with the commerce department citing their “activities contrary to US national security and foreign policy.” Those added to the “entity list” are restricted from obtaining US items and technologies without government authorization. “We will not allow adversaries to exploit American technology to bolster their own militaries and threaten American lives,” US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick said. The entities
Minister of Finance Chuang Tsui-yun (莊翠雲) yesterday told lawmakers that she “would not speculate,” but a “response plan” has been prepared in case Taiwan is targeted by US President Donald Trump’s reciprocal tariffs, which are to be announced on Wednesday next week. The Trump administration, including US Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent, has said that much of the proposed reciprocal tariffs would focus on the 15 countries that have the highest trade surpluses with the US. Bessent has referred to those countries as the “dirty 15,” but has not named them. Last year, Taiwan’s US$73.9 billion trade surplus with the US
Prices of gasoline and diesel products at domestic gas stations are to fall NT$0.2 and NT$0.1 per liter respectively this week, even though international crude oil prices rose last week, CPC Corp, Taiwan (台灣中油) and Formosa Petrochemical Corp (台塑石化) said yesterday. International crude oil prices continued rising last week, as the US Energy Information Administration reported a larger-than-expected drop in US commercial crude oil inventories, CPC said in a statement. Based on the company’s floating oil price formula, the cost of crude oil rose 2.38 percent last week from a week earlier, it said. News that US President Donald Trump plans a “secondary
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